This post was last updated on December 23rd, 2022.
Wondering what the top intermodal transportation advantages in 2023 are? In this blog post, we’ll discuss seven reasons why intermodal transportation should be on your radar for any company looking to improve its logistics distribution in 2023 and beyond.
The Advantages of Intermodal Transportation: 7 Reasons Why a Canadian Business Should Branch Out Into Intermodal Freight Transport
1. Lower transportation costs
Intermodal transportation saves you money. Intermodal freight logistics are sometimes thousands of dollars less than truckloads, often leading to better on-time shipments.
Even where modal transit costs just slightly less than the cost of carrying one load, savings are usually significant over a more extended period.
Businesses that are a good fit for intermodal can expect to save between 10% to 15%.
2. Scalability of your Operations
It is scalable as you need it to be. Intermodal transportation opens up your options for international distribution.
Moving cargo shipments across the country cost-effectively and sustainably means greater expansion opportunities. The less time your products spend in transit, the faster and further you’re able to ship your products to increase your customer reach.
Intermodal transportation is also excellent for businesses with growing shipping volumes. With full load services, you can partner with intermodal carriers to ship more freight volume, filling in entire containers that could result in exciting scale savings for your company.
3. Intermodal Rail Transport Makes it Better for the Environment
Intermodal transport is more environmentally friendly than other modes of transportation, especially if trains are involved.
Train transportation is four times more efficient than a truckload. A fully loaded intermodal train removes 280 vehicles off the road and reduces the need for air freight transportation.
With fewer trucks on the roads, there’s also a reduction in noise pollution, and highways are less congested.
4. Efficiency
Moving freight with different transport modes increases productivity, with less time spent loading and unloading intermodal containers.
Every minute counts in the shipping industry. And every lost minute can be costly for a business.
When it comes down to shipping—the faster the merchandise can be delivered, the less money will needlessly get spent on storing or delivering that shipment later.
5. Reduce Risks
Intermodal is safer than other transportation modes, especially when it comes to railroads.
Not only are accidents rarer, but shipping on rail cars also means more predictable logistics. (Yay to no traffic.)
Overall, because shippers carry cargo into intermodal containers from origin to destination, the risk of theft is considerably reduced. Avoiding multiple cargo handling in and out of different shipping containers or trailers prevents breakage risks.
6. Keep control over your intermodal shipments
With intermodal transportation, you have better control over each leg of the journey with track and trace capabilities than shipping with a multimodal transport operator.
Why? Because with a multimodal shipping company, you will negotiate a single combined bill of landing. Whereas, with an intermodal operation company, you can negotiate and keep control of each part of the shipment.
This also applies if an issue arises. With multimodal transportation, you will have to “wait and see” how the company can fix the problem, but overall, they handle each part of the shipment. With intermodal, you can change plans along the way and find solutions with other carriers if needed.
7. Reliable capacity and transit times
Intermodal transportation offers dependable, scheduled service with confirmed capacity and lower costs.
Rail intermodal is often the only transportation mode to handle large and heavy cargoes. The ability to offer reliable, scheduled service with confirmed capacity is an essential advantage for intermodal transportation.
This becomes especially important as businesses look to expand their reach into new markets.
In the end, intermodal transportation is a great way to get the most out of the logistics industry by using not one but several shipping modes. By combining the benefits of each transportation type, intermodal can provide an efficient and cost-effective way to move your freight.
Intermodal Shipping Is Growing. Work With an Intermodal Partner You Can Trust.
Intermodal transportation is on the rise, and it’s not going anywhere. In 2019 intermodal transport work was responsible for more than 37.2M tonnes of containers on flat cars shipping.
Intermodal is a smart business move that can help you sustainably grow your company and, with the right partner on your side, help you save beyond anything you’ve imagined.
RailGateway is a Canadian company that provides intermodal rail services, moving full loads across the country at an affordable rate.
With seamless service and quality customer care, RailGateway has ensured its success in this industry by giving customers what they want: on-time, affordably priced intermodal transport.
RailGateway wants to make your life easier. Get your intermodal rail quote today to see the difference we can make for you.
